


No Place Like Home

by moirasrosesroses



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Alexis needs a hug, Homesickness, Twyla Sands has a small part
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-12 10:48:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29134329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moirasrosesroses/pseuds/moirasrosesroses
Summary: Alexis adjusts to a new way of life in New York without her family or friends from Schitt's Creek.
Relationships: Alexis Rose & David Rose, Patrick Brewer & Alexis Rose
Comments: 22
Kudos: 77
Collections: Schitt's Creek Season 7





	No Place Like Home

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [SCSeason7](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/SCSeason7) collection. 



> **Prompt:**
> 
> 7x02: Alexis thought that sharing a motel room with her brother was bad, but living in a tiny, fourth floor walk-up with paper thin walls and less-than-courteous neighbors might actually be worse. How does she adjust to this aspect of city life? How does she make herself at home in spite of it all?

Her footsteps echoed off the blank walls as she walked on the worn hardwood floors. It seemed so empty. So stark. So…

So uncomfortable.

The sound of distant sirens penetrated her thoughts. Shaking her head slightly, she glanced around the room, taking it all in: the small kitchen (if it could even be called that) with the white stove in need of a good clean, the door to the bathroom that looked like it was hanging slightly lopsided, and the bedroom which had a door frame, but no door. Not that it mattered anyway, she thought. No one else was there. 

She knelt gingerly next to a box and tore off the tape with a loud “ffft!” It was the only sound in her apartment as she unpacked her belongings. 

* * *

The couch made her apartment feel more like home. At least she had somewhere comfortable to sit as she ate her dinner of yogurt, baked chips, and a chicken sandwich. 

Alone. 

Again.

But she wasn’t really alone. Her neighbors had made sure she knew that. The last few nights of slamming doors and heavy footsteps had assured her that she was definitely not alone in her apartment building. 

And maybe not all of the footsteps she heard were from her neighbors. A shiver went down her spine as she thought about the previous night and the footsteps that had sounded as if they were wandering her living room. 

She picked up her phone and quickly tapped on David’s number. 

“Alexis,” David’s voice rang clearly through her speaker. “This better be important because I have lasagna on my plate that I am currently  _ not _ eating to answer this phone call.”

Alexis opened her mouth to retort, but knew David wasn’t being serious. Instead, she moved past it as she had done hundreds of times before. “Do you think I made a mistake getting an apartment in Brooklyn?” she asked tentatively and set her yogurt down on the cardboard box that she was using as a temporary coffee table.

“Yes,” David said flatly. “You’ll be robbed while you sleep.”

Alexis scoffed, irritated that her brother was being so blase about being the victim of a crime. “I’m serious, David.” 

There was a brief pause at the other end before David said gently, “It’s what you could afford and it was the best option.”

Twirling her earring in thought, Alexis took a deep breath. “I know. And Patrick said that too.”

“See?”

“It’s just-” She paused. 

“Just what?”

“David, do you think this place could be haunted?” she asked, almost timidly. 

“Oh, it’s definitely haunted,” David said seriously. 

“David!”

“I’m serious! Keep your mouth closed at night,” David continued. She heard a distant “David!” from Patrick chiding his spouse. 

“Thank you, Patrick,” Alexis frowned.

“You might want to find a priest,” David continued undeterred. There was slight commotion on the other end of the line and a laughing “ow!” from David which Alexis could only assume was Patrick pinching David as a soft reprimand.

“Ugh!” Alexis groaned, frustrated at David’s incessant teasing. “Stop it, David.”

“It’s not haunted,” David said sincerely. 

“But I heard footsteps the other night.”

She could almost see David’s eye roll all the way in New York. “It’s not haunted, Alexis. You’re just used to being out in the middle of nowhere where nothing happens.” 

“Hey!” she heard Patrick say. 

“You’re probably right,” Alexis conceded. 

“I know.” 

“Ugh, David,” she whined. 

She heard Patrick whisper, “Ask her when we can see the apartment.”

“When can we see your apartment?” David dutifully asked. “I mean, I’m sure it’s different than the pictures on Zillow.”

Alexis nervously glanced around the room that was not yet decorated to her taste. A pang of disappointment hit her as she doubted she could ever really make it feel like  _ her _ apartment. 

“When I’m finished unpacking.”

“You’ve been there a week! What are you doing?”

“I’ve been busy, David!” Alexis retorted angrily. 

“Too busy to not live in squalor?”

Alexis pouted, not knowing what she expected from the phone call. “Thanks for not making me feel better.”

“Alexis,” David said gently. “Your apartment is not haunted and I’m sure soon enough you’ll come to love it and the neighborhood you live in.”

Alexis smiled at the kind words. 

“Even if it is in Brooklyn.”

She laughed softly at David’s teasing. “Okay,” she nodded. 

“And if you need help with something, Patrick is always available,” David offered. She could hear the smirk that must have been on his face, but she knew he was being serious. 

“That’s true!” a muffled voice affirmed from the other end of the phone. 

“Do you have anything unpacked or set up?” David asked after a short pause. 

Alexis shook her head, but then realized he couldn’t see her. “I have a couch and some clothes unpacked.”

David chuckled playfully. “By ‘unpacked’ you mean on your bedroom floor.”

She hated that he was right. “It’s no worse than Kim Kardashian, David!”

“Ew!”

There was a brief silence on the phone before David asked, “Have you found a favorite cafe yet?”

“I was thinking that maybe I should, like, learn to cook or something,” she explained slowly. 

“Who  _ are _ you?”

“It costs a lot of money to eat out all the time!” she defended. 

A brief commotion on the other end interrupted their conversation and she suddenly heard Patrick’s voice much clearer now. “Alexis, I think that’s a really smart idea and if you want any help meal planning or how to set up a budget, let me know.”

“Thank you, Patrick,” she hummed cheerily, feeling better about her decision. 

She heard David distantly from the other end quietly say, “But finding a cafe she likes might make it feel more like home.”

“True,” Patrick whispered back. “You know, it couldn’t hurt to find a place for when you do want to treat yourself.”

Alexis mulled over his point before saying anything.

“Maybe get a plant,” David advised, clearly the one with the phone now. 

She couldn’t help but smile at all of his advice and attempts to make her feel better. “Thank you, David,” she murmured. 

“You’re welcome, Alexis,” David replied tenderly and hung up the phone. 

And Alexis was alone again.

* * *

The toolbox that her dad had gotten her as a housewarming present was finally coming in handy. She had at first teased him for the gift, passing it off as yet another example of his terrible gift giving, but was now incredibly thankful for it. 

With a final  _ whack _ of the hammer, she set the hammer down on the desk and hung up her framed diploma. Taking a step back to ensure the perfect placement, she smiled proudly to herself and played with the rings on her fingers, twisting them this way and that. Her home office finally seemed like a home office. 

She sat at the small desk she had found at a thrift store and took in the feeling of accomplishment. A small succulent in a teal pot sat cheerily next to a frosted glass pencil cup. She eyed the diploma, taking in the words that were evidence of her accomplishment. When she got to “Pubic Relations,” she couldn’t stop herself from laughing out loud at the memory of her family finding such amusement in the misspelling. 

Slamming doors from above her knocked her from her reverie as she stared angrily at the ceiling. Determined not to let the noise bother her today and take away from her achievement, she decided to show it off. Snapping a quick picture, she texted it proudly to David. 

[David] Don’t let this plant die. 

She frowned. That wasn’t quite the response she wanted. She texted the picture to Twyla.

[Alexis] Home office set up!

[Twyla] Alexis! That looks amazing!

That was better. She smiled and took a drink of the wine she poured as a reward for being almost done with unpacking. 

[David] Does this mean we can FaceTime now and see your apartment?

[Alexis] I have one more box left.

[David] Oh my god! What have you been doing???

Alexis frowned, staring at the final box. She had told herself that there was nothing important in it and it was a useful temporary coffee table. But if she were being honest, she had left it in the living room as a way to remind herself that she had moved in and she could always move out. This was temporary housing, she told herself.

Her phone dinged in her hand.

[Twyla] You’re going to do great things at that desk. I can tell.

Alexis knew she was right.

* * *

Her day had been exhausting. After a meeting with the public relations team at InterFlix, she had decided to take David’s advice and find a new cafe to frequent. Wandering through her neighborhood, she found various cafes with enticing smells wafting from their doors, but none that truly caught her interest. She settled anyway on a small corner shop called Rosalia’s Cafe and bought a coffee and sandwich to take home with her for an early dinner.

She settled in at her kitchen table and read through the proposal put together by InterFlix, but her thoughts constantly wandered elsewhere. 

Side-eyeing the still packed box, she sighed dramatically as if it were somehow taunting her. 

“Fine!” she groaned to no one in particular. 

She ripped open the tape on the box and glanced at its contents. The picture her dad had given her when he thought she was going to the Galapagos stared up at her. Her family all together, looking happier than they had in years, stood in front of the place she had considered home for three years. 

She couldn’t stop the tears that fell from her eyes. That’s what was wrong with her apartment: it was missing her family. It wasn’t home. 

Wiping the tears from her cheeks with her fingers, she caught her breath, feeling foolish for getting emotional over a picture. She had lived without her family before and this was no different, she told herself defiantly. 

Nevertheless, she carefully picked up the framed photo, flitting her eyes over David’s warm smile, her dad’s eyes squinting with affection, and her mom’s practiced expression when a camera was in her face. 

She looked around the room trying to decide where she should hang it, but no place seemed appropriate. Rolling her shoulders, her mouth twitched to the side with a small hum. 

The picture felt heavy and smooth in her hands as she continued to ponder its perfect placement when she finally decided it didn’t belong in her living room. It belonged over her bed for when she laid awake at night feeling the emptiness of the room, she would know they were still with her. 

Picking up the hammer and finding another nail, she set to work. The bed was unmade and the room slightly cluttered with old laundry strewn on the floor, but when she finally put the picture in place, the room was immediately warmer. 

* * *

“Alexis, it looks great!” Patrick said, crowding out David on the phone camera. 

“Thank you,” Alexis smiled proudly. 

“Wait, can you show me the living room again?” David asked seriously. 

She turned the phone so David could see whatever it was he wanted to see again. 

“Did you see a shadow person next to that curtain?” David asked, raising his eyebrows with a smirk on his face. 

“David!” Patrick and Alexis chided at the same time. 

“I’m also getting some motel vibes from the bathroom wallpaper,” David rested his chin on his hand, squinting into the camera. 

She was glad at that moment that David couldn’t see the smile that came across her face. It hadn’t occurred to her when she first saw it, but as soon as he said it, she knew he was right. It really did remind her of their motel room. 

“You’re right,” she said eventually. “It does.” She flipped the camera back to selfie view.

“We can’t wait to visit,” Patrick said sincerely. “I think David is really looking forward to it.” 

“I bet you can’t wait to share a room with me again,” David smirked. 

Alexis faked a frown, but couldn’t quite contain the small smile that crossed her lips. “Love you,” she said sweetly. 

“Mm,” David hummed. “Love you, too,” he said softly and rolled his eyes with a small smirk. “Talk to you tomorrow.”

David hung up with a small wave from him and Patrick. Alexis looked around her still empty apartment, but felt decidedly less alone. 


End file.
